Reviewed Book: Warlick, Harold L. Homeward bound: messages about life after death. Lima, Ohio: CSS Pub, 1991. Studies in antiquity and Christianity

Nevile, Donald C.

English

Scholars Commons

Consensus
Volume 23
Issue 1 Essays in the History of Interpretation Article 16
5-1-1997
Homeward bound: messages about life after death
Donald C. Nevile
Follow this and additional works at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus
This Book Reviews is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by an
authorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.
Recommended Citation
Nevile, Donald C. (1997) "Homeward bound: messages about life after death," Consensus: Vol. 23 : Iss. 1 , Article 16.
Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol23/iss1/16
94 Consensus
The book is a series of 15 sermons based on the lives of Christian saints
commemorated in the calendar of Lesser Festivals and Commemorations
in the Lutheran Book of Worship. The sermons have been used in the
context of worship at All Saints’ Lutheran Church in Lilburn, Georgia where
Rossing is a part-time staff member.
I found each of the sermons to be excellent devotional reading as Rossing
superbly combines the saints’ lives with those of our own. Preachers will
find inspiration for their own sermon preparation. Laypersons will find that
indeed we can celebrate our own lives as saints by the grace of God. In
fact Rossing encourages creativity in compiling our own list of saints to
commemorate and celebrate.
I would recommend this book for both clergy and laity; a book that
includes a sermon on the commemoration of Mary, Mother of our Lord,
palatable to a Lutheran heritage, is indeed worth having.
David G. Mueller
Bentley, Alberta
Homeward Bound
Harold L. Warlick
Lima, Ohio: C.S.S. Publishing Company, 1991
181 pp.
Harold Warlick is identified as . .minister to the college and chairman
of the department of religion and philosophy. High Point College, High
Point, North Carolina.” The Library of Congress Catalogue data tells us
that he is Baptist. The book is subtitled “Messages about Life after Death”.
But the data describes them as “sermons about life after death”. It is not
altogether clear, then, what the content and function of this book are. The
messages/sermons have titles, but no biblical texts are prefixed, and they
vary in length from very short (four pages) to very long (fourteen pages).
Thus, they may be anything from brief college chapel addresses to privately
composed personal meditations.
The book appears to be thematic, connected throughout by the theme
of life after death, as the subtitle promises. In his Introduction, Warlick
affirms that “We are all on a homeward bound journey” (p.7). Loss of spir-
itual home and inheritance, he says, is our great tragedy. He also confides
that this is a book of middle age; hence the importance of the “vision of
home”. The first meditation/sermon is indicative: “The Child Points the
Way”. In the ensuing pages he often juxtaposes the child of Bethlehem
with the journey home and the promise of eternal life.
Warlick is a very good writer. His homiletic style (we will assume that
these are sermons) is generally to begin with a contemporary situation.
Book Reviews 95
i
I
j-
I
1
either graceful or sinful, and then lead up to a biblical text (usually pot
identified earlier) buried in the narrative. This inductive approach, moving
from experience to spiritual truth, is generally effective in illustrating the
truthfulness and applicability of scripture to today’s experience. If there is
a problem with this approach, it is that faith tends to come across as built
on experience and not on objective proclamation.
We have said that the book appears to be thematic. Often, however,
the theme of “going home” is missing. One wonders even more, then, about
the subtitle and the provenance of these messages: are the non-thematic
meditations simply “fillers” chosen from the “barrel” and used to pad the
book up to 181 pages?
Warlick is a Baptist with whom Lutherans could be friends. Just the
same, he makes some assumptions that some of us might challenge. We
might disagree with his conclusion regarding the reason for Jesus’ life and
death: “There is no greater purpose for anything than releasing us from
our fears of life and death” (p. 21).
A more substantial criticism arises from Warlick’s theme which affirms
the Christian faith as a journey through this life to our eternal home. This
is a narrow, personal interpretation of the Christian faith which inevitably
misses the social and active dimension of our life together as the body of
Christ. Many readers of this journal, especially those informed and inspir-
ited by the liberationist and feminist critiques of society and the church,
will find Warlick’s message incomplete.
For those who have made the commitment to lectionary preaching, it
will be interesting to read these sermons. Here, in another sense, these
themes are personal, meaning that they arise from the individual rather
than from the church. Who has not been enticed by the “free preaching
temptation”? But how to choose those themes? Politics? Personal prob-
lems? Social crises? Passages of life, such as Warlick’s, shared by some but
not by all one’s listeners at any given time?
When you are oppressed by the loneliness of the preacher’s task, console
yourself by reflecting on the even greater loneliness of the person who, like
Warlick, must preach without the lectionary, aptly and warmly called comes
(companion) by the medieval church!
Donald Nevile
Highwood Lutheran Church
Calgary, Alberta


Homeward bound: messages about life after death

Wilfrid Laurier University

ConsensusVolume 23Issue 1 Essays in the History of Interpretation Article 165-1-1997Homeward bound: messages about life after deathDonald C. NevileFollow this and additional works at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensusThis Book Reviews is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by anauthorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.Recommended CitationNevile, Donald C. (1997) "Homeward bound: messages about life after death," Consensus: Vol. 23 : Iss. 1 , Article 16.Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol23/iss1/1694 ConsensusThe book is a series of 15 sermons based on the lives of Christian saintscommemorated in the calendar of Lesser Festivals and Commemorationsin the Lutheran Book of Worship. The sermons have been used in thecontext of worship at All Saints’ Lutheran Church in Lilburn, Georgia whereRossing is a part-time staff member.I found each of the sermons to be excellent devotional reading as Rossingsuperbly combines the saints’ lives with those of our own. Preachers willfind inspiration for their own sermon preparation. Laypersons will find thatindeed we can celebrate our own lives as saints by the grace of God. Infact Rossing encourages creativity in compiling our own list of saints tocommemorate and celebrate.I would recommend this book for both clergy and laity; a book thatincludes a sermon on the commemoration of Mary, Mother of our Lord,palatable to a Lutheran heritage, is indeed worth having.David G. MuellerBentley, AlbertaHomeward BoundHarold L. WarlickLima, Ohio: C.S.S. Publishing Company, 1991181 pp.Harold Warlick is identified as . .minister to the college and chairmanof the department of religion and philosophy. High Point College, HighPoint, North Carolina.” The Library of Congress Catalogue data tells usthat he is Baptist. The book is subtitled “Messages about Life after Death”.But the data describes them as “sermons about life after death”. It is notaltogether clear, then, what the content and function of this book are. Themessages/sermons have titles, but no biblical texts are prefixed, and theyvary in length from very short (four pages) to very long (fourteen pages).Thus, they may be anything from brief college chapel addresses to privatelycomposed personal meditations.The book appears to be thematic, connected throughout by the themeof life after death, as the subtitle promises. In his Introduction, Warlickaffirms that “We are all on a homeward bound journey” (p.7). Loss of spir-itual home and inheritance, he says, is our great tragedy. He also confidesthat this is a book of middle age; hence the importance of the “vision ofhome”. The first meditation/sermon is indicative: “The Child Points theWay”. In the ensuing pages he often juxtaposes the child of Bethlehemwith the journey home and the promise of eternal life.Warlick is a very good writer. His homiletic style (we will assume thatthese are sermons) is generally to begin with a contemporary situation.Book Reviews 95iIj-I1either graceful or sinful, and then lead up to a biblical text (usually potidentified earlier) buried in the narrative. This inductive approach, movingfrom experience to spiritual truth, is generally effective in illustrating thetruthfulness and applicability of scripture to today’s experience. If there isa problem with this approach, it is that faith tends to come across as builton experience and not on objective proclamation.We have said that the book appears to be thematic. Often, however,the theme of “going home” is missing. One wonders even more, then, aboutthe subtitle and the provenance of these messages: are the non-thematicmeditations simply “fillers” chosen from the “barrel” and used to pad thebook up to 181 pages?Warlick is a Baptist with whom Lutherans could be friends. Just thesame, he makes some assumptions that some of us might challenge. Wemight disagree with his conclusion regarding the reason for Jesus’ life anddeath: “There is no greater purpose for anything than releasing us fromour fears of life and death” (p. 21).A more substantial criticism arises from Warlick’s theme which affirmsthe Christian faith as a journey through this life to our eternal home. Thisis a narrow, personal interpretation of the Christian faith which inevitablymisses the social and active dimension of our life together as the body ofChrist. Many readers of this journal, especially those informed and inspir-ited by the liberationist and feminist critiques of society and the church,will find Warlick’s message incomplete.For those who have made the commitment to lectionary preaching, itwill be interesting to read these sermons. Here, in another sense, thesethemes are personal, meaning that they arise from the individual ratherthan from the church. Who has not been enticed by the “free preachingtemptation”? But how to choose those themes? Politics? Personal prob-lems? Social crises? Passages of life, such as Warlick’s, shared by some butnot by all one’s listeners at any given time?When you are oppressed by the loneliness of the preacher’s task, consoleyourself by reflecting on the even greater loneliness of the person who, likeWarlick, must preach without the lectionary, aptly and warmly called comes(companion) by the medieval church!Donald NevileHighwood Lutheran ChurchCalgary, Alberta

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